HooH, the Aeon of Equilibrium, manifested once again.
This time, the mysterious Aeon was visible not only to everyone aboard the Astral Express, but also to Aventurine.
The scroll containing the Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Diagram in Caelus's hand loosened on its own. The cord binding it slipped free and fell away as the painting slowly unfurled.
The diagram began rotating by itself.
An indescribably profound aura seeped from it, making the surrounding scenery seem to transform into an ink-wash painting.
"Hey, why did my art style change again?"
The moment Stelle noticed the environment changing, she pulled out her phone and looked at herself through the camera, curiously examining her altered appearance.
Aventurine, meanwhile, stared blankly at the Aeon of Equilibrium that had suddenly appeared.
The IPC possessed records concerning this Aeon, but they amounted to little more than a few brief descriptions. No detailed image of HooH had ever circulated publicly.
Perhaps such records existed, but only the highest members of the Board of Directors would have access to them.
As a gambler willing to place anything on the table as a chip, Aventurine instinctively began wondering whether knowing the appearance of the Aeon of Equilibrium could someday become a bargaining chip of its own.
March 7th instinctively raised the camera hanging from her neck and started taking pictures.
Naturally, nothing appeared in the photographs.
Under the pull of HooH's power, the painting vanished in an instant.
Then HooH seemed to move.
Perhaps the Aeon gave Caelus the slightest nod.
Or perhaps nothing had happened at all.
Despite HooH's incomprehensibly vast form, where even the smallest movement should have been unmistakable, the impression remained strangely ambiguous.
As though HooH had moved.
And yet had not moved at all.
The Aeon of Equilibrium disappeared.
Everything returned to normal.
Caelus turned toward Aventurine.
"If I understand your circumstances correctly, you are the last surviving Avgin, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
Aventurine displayed a rare degree of genuine respect.
It was difficult to imagine that this was the same man who usually carried himself with a carefree, almost frivolous attitude, forever willing to wager even his own life without hesitation.
"Sigonia-IV."
"A world covered in windblown sand."
"Because of the movement of several nearby stars, most of the planet consists of deserts and wastelands."
"Although the IPC's Market Development Department used technology to improve the planet's habitability, it still remained a harsh place to live."
As Caelus spoke, his gaze gradually shifted in a particular direction.
His description had been vague, yet everyone present somehow understood exactly where he was looking.
Toward Sigonia-IV.
"Come with me."
A strange sensation swept through Aventurine's mind.
By the time he regained his senses, he was standing on burning sand.
Everything around him looked like an ordinary desert.
Yet Aventurine knew.
This was Sigonia-IV.
This was his homeland.
"Abundance shall grant this land life."
A single emerald drop of dew appeared from nowhere.
It fell onto the ground.
The earth trembled.
Trees burst upward from beneath the sand one after another.
Fresh green grass spread across the ground.
The loose sand beneath their feet gradually hardened, until it became dark, moist soil rich with nutrients.
The transformation spread outward like an unstoppable contagion.
Soon, everything Aventurine could see had become green, overflowing with life.
"Equilibrium shall reshape the ecology of this planet."
"From this day forward, Sigonia-IV will exist between two extremes."
"One side will remain scorching desert and barren wasteland."
"The other will possess abundant water, thriving vegetation, and the animals that depend upon them."
"Desert and jungle shall become opposing halves of the same world."
"And both shall endure upon this planet."
While Aventurine was still staring at the transformed landscape, a sound suddenly reached his ears.
It was like a clock being violently wound backward.
A translucent silhouette appeared before him.
Slowly, it became clearer.
More solid.
More real.
When the final trace of illusion disappeared, a woman stood before him.
She wore old, weathered clothing marked by years of sand and wind.
Her violet eyes stared directly at Aventurine.
"...Kakavasha?"
The woman looked at him with confusion before softly calling his name.
"...Sister."
"It's me."
"You've grown so much."
"You must have had such a difficult time while I was gone."
"My little Kakavasha is an adult now."
"Someone capable of taking care of himself."
"I feel like I slept for a very long time."
"Just now, a voice told me that I could come to the future and see what my little brother looked like after growing up."
"So I came."
"I never imagined you'd really be this grown up already."
She tilted her head.
"What's wrong?"
"Why are you making such an awful face?"
"You look exactly like you did when you were little and wanted to cry but were too stubborn to let yourself."
"You haven't changed at all in that regard."
"There, there."
"Your sister is here."
Then she suddenly noticed his clothes.
"Oh my, what are you wearing?"
"Why is there such a huge opening over your chest?"
"Is it because it's too hot?"
"If the wind picks up, won't sand get inside?"
"And what are those black markings around your neck?"
"Are those tattoos?"
She looked down.
"Huh?"
"This isn't sand."
"The ground is so soft and damp."
Then she raised her head.
"Wow..."
"These trees are enormous!"
"Where are we?"
"I've never seen trees this tall before."
"And there's soil under our feet."
"Grass too."
"We only ever saw things like this in the promotional brochures the Company showed us."
Aventurine merely smiled at his sister.
The smile carried far too many complicated emotions to name.
Yet the feelings within his eyes were unmistakable.
Happiness.
Joy.
A kind of happiness he had never experienced before.
Then more people began emerging from the jungle.
One after another, they stared in wonder at the towering trees, fertile soil, and humid air.
"If you could live your life again, would you still choose to be the child blessed by the Mother Goddess?"
"You are the child blessed by the Mother Goddess."
"You are destined to lead your people toward happiness."
At this moment, that prophecy seemed to have finally become reality.
[IPC Breaking News]
[According to newly received reports, Sigonia-IV, formerly classified as a desert planet, underwent an unprecedented ecological transformation overnight under the influence of an unknown power.]
[An oasis now covers approximately one-third of the planet's total surface area.]
[The newly formed region contains vast vegetation and abundant freshwater resources.]
[How these plants could possibly have grown to maturity overnight remains unknown.]
[The origin of the enormous water reserves is equally mysterious. Their supply appears almost inexhaustible.]
[At the same time, large numbers of Avgins, a native population of Sigonia-IV previously classified by the IPC as extinct, have inexplicably appeared within the newly formed oasis.]
[Aventurine, one of the Ten Stonehearts of the IPC's Strategic Investment Department, is currently assisting the Avgins in rebuilding their homeland.]
[The IPC has also formally announced a new development initiative for Sigonia-IV.]
[Plans are underway to transform this planet, whose ecosystem now defies conventional scientific explanation, into a new interstellar tourism destination.]
[Sources familiar with the matter claim that the creator of Penacony's Eternal Dreamscape may have been involved in the incident.]
[That concludes this IPC Breaking News report.]
[We will continue monitoring the situation and provide updates as soon as further information becomes available.]
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)